woe

[woh]
noun
1.
grievous distress, affliction, or trouble: His woe was almost beyond description.
2.
an affliction: She suffered a fall, among her other woes.
interjection
3.
an exclamation of grief, distress, or lamentation.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English wo (interjection and noun), Old English (interjection) (cf. wellaway); cognate with Dutch wee, German Weh, Old Norse vei, Latin vae


1. anguish, tribulation, trial, wretchedness, melancholy. See sorrow.


1. joy.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To woe
00:10
Woe is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
Collins
World English Dictionary
woe (wəʊ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  literary intense grief or misery
2.  (often plural) affliction or misfortune
3.  woe betide someone misfortune will befall someone: woe betide you if you arrive late
 
interj
4.  archaic Also: woe is me an exclamation of sorrow or distress
 
[Old English wā, wǣ; related to Old Saxon, Old High German wē, Old Norse vei, Gothic wai, Latin vae, Sanskrit uvē; see wail]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

woe
O.E. wa, a common exclamation of lament in many languages (cf. L. væ, Gk. oa, Ger. weh, Lettish wai, O.Ir. fe, Welsh gwae, Armenian vay). The noun is attested from c.1175, from the interjection.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Remember, the earthquake and tsunami brought woe and suffering in this instance
  to these horses.
And, woe to all the next speakers who talked about the nuances of translations.
Such luxury at a time of economic woe may be surprising.
Virtually every corner of the sky is filled with some tale of woe.
Slang
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